UK and Germany sign deal for twinning of airforce bases

The UK and Germany have signed an agreement to officially mark the twinning of the Royal Air Force’s (RAF) Brize Norton air station and the Wunstorf Air Base of the German Air Force.

Germany’s Wunstorf Air Base serves as home to the Air Transport Wing 62, the unit that operates the country’s fleet of Airbus A400M Atlas military transport aircraft.

RAF Commanding No LXX Squadron officer wing commander Ed Horne said: “This is an opportunity for both organisations to work much more closely together specifically on A400M Atlas in the first instance.

“However, there are many similarities between Wunstorf and RAF Brize Norton in terms of air mobility, air transport and parachuting, and we believe that we have a lot to learn from each other.”

With the twinning of the two military airfields, the UK and Germany have strengthened their partnership in areas related to defence and security and in lessons learned from the mutual operation of the A400M aircraft.

“We can improve our performance and achievements by sharing information, experience and, most importantly, best practice.”

Under the terms of the new agreement, a steering group will be deployed to set the direction of the working groups, and report the progress and distribution of information to the relevant areas.

German Air Force Air Transport Wing 62 base commander colonel Ludger Bette said: “We are convinced that we can improve our performance and achievements by sharing information, experience and, most importantly, best practice.”

The twinning agreement will allow the two airforce bases to share training resources and knowledge, and facilitate the formal exchange of personnel.

Besides supporting the collaboration between the two air mobility forces, the twinning will also enhance the operational capability of the A400M aircraft.